Frozen with the Forecast
by AnHeiressofaSOLDIER
Summary: Serah had known from the beginning that she needed something different from Snow and Light, but it's harder still realizing they need her for different reasons. Serah wishes she didn't have to be split between them. If only Snow and Light could coincide.


**Frozen with the Forecast**

Serah Farron didn't remember the first time she met Snow Villiers, as much as the first time he insulted Lighting. It had happened the same day, but Serah looked back at that day on many late nights, and she wondered…

…

Serah, and Claire had been taken to a gun range with their parents for Claire's ninth birthday. Serah had been more impressed with the pink sunset that pressed on the buildings more than anything else, but Claire had seemed to find her calling.

Even as a six year old, Serah had had to wonder why guns would even be needed in a town as peaceful as Bodhum. More than anything on that day, she remembered sitting on her mother's shoulders, and she remembered their father deeming Claire "his little warrior." It had been with this mindset that the family had sought out the owners of such an odd place.

Who would it be but the Villiers? Serah remembered the way her and Claire's father had been so insistent on showing his new gun to Mr. Villiers, but maybe the real problem started when Claire deemed that she could shoot any target with it. Serah had learned long ago to never doubt her sister, but someone did.

Snow had had a baby face when Serah had met him, but she would have never said this. She had a bit more social grace than Claire even at that time; she'd also be lying if she said the nine-year-old hadn't intimidated her

Yes, it'd be years before Serah realized that Snow had noticed her as thoroughly as she'd noticed him.

Snow had purposefully let the screen door slam as he came out of the kitchen (the gun range was an inside one; it was connected to the Villier's home) and regarded Claire with a raised eyebrow. "You like play fighting? You wanna play with me? Bodhum's too boring to not be silly."

Serah giggled slightly at Snow's words. She also laughed in realizing the kid was wearing a hat with a similar phrase on it. Maybe it was in that Claire had never gotten Serah to truly laugh, that she lashed out. "There's no playing when you're my age. If you looked closer to our age, I might play with _you_."

It hadn't taken long for Serah to realize that Claire, at least, had met Snow before. If she were older she probably would have tried to ebb the tension between them, but as a little girl, she just sucked on a cherry lollipop and waited for whatever comeback Snow might dish out. "You're too butch for me to hang out with. I was just being nice. Who wants to be serious, anyway?"

As if to illustrate his point, Snow had reached up and taken Serah from her mother's arms. Snow tickled Serah relentlessly, and when Claire got a free shot, she nailed Snow in the face with her elbow.

Serah laughed at that, and both families looked at her more questioningly than their arguing kids. In realizing that Claire had made her truly laugh for the first time, Serah realized she'd always be torn between Claire and Snow.

She also knew that from that day on, Snow would try to prove to Claire how childish he could be, but Claire tried to show how much of a tomboy she could be. Serah imagined that she'd probably be dead in her grave before the two realized they were hurting themselves by trying to spite each other.

…

Serah skipped down her new hallway with pep in her step, and a smile on her face. Though the new school uniforms didn't do much to heighten her looks, she had to admit that she liked the design. Now if she could only replicate it and change the colors…

Her thoughts were immediately cutoff by a certain someone latching onto her book bag. Serah's feet skidded on the freshly waxed floor, but she couldn't help but laugh when she did fall and saw Snow looking down on her. Today was just too good a day to be unhappy. Especially if she was seeing Snow.

Jumping to her feet with a speed that showed she _did_ hang out with her older sister too much, Serah wrapped her arms around Snow as he gave her a big bear hug. Snow breathed in the smell of Serah's hair, and for a moment he just rocked her in his arms. Finally, she pushed him away and looked him over with a keen seriousness. "You know Light won't want me to see you. Our parents had that discord with yours, and now our parents are dead…"

It was there in an instant. A reason to mourn; to be depressed; to realize that she was the age Lightning was when their mom had died, but Serah brushed it all off with a flick of her hand and focused on Snow. She'd learned long ago that she was going to have to be happier and emotional if Light was going to be numb and in denial.

Snow must have noticed the darkness that meant to encompass Serah. Not even acknowledging what she might want, he slung her into his arms and carried her out of the school building. He only let her down when they were at an ice cream parlor far away from the school. Despite her qualms about ditching Claire, she had to smile at Snow's enthusiasm. It had been missing in her life for too long now. _He_ had been missing in her life for too long now.

It was only when Serah's leg was tapping to a beat on the checkered floor—recovering from a brain freeze—that Snow finally made his ideas known. "Serah, the fight between our families was ridiculous. You and I both know that if they'd been less proud like us, things would have been good in the end. Serah, I want to help you. You guys need all the help you can get."

It was in being around "Lightning" rather than Claire that the younger Farron was instantly indignant at his words. She prepared to swallow the cherry she'd popped into her mouth, but _then_ she would lay it on him thick.

At least, she had intended to. When Snow reached over and put a hand atop hers, Serah found that all logical thought had left her. "I'm not saying that you guys can't take care of yourself. I just want you to know you have family. My dad talks about your parents all the time. There's not a day that goes by where he's not regretful for-"

Serah, though Snow would probably deny it, was sure she was the most surprised when she leaned across the table and kissed him. Here she was at fifteen, a freshman in high school, and she was already trying her luck with a senior. He wasn't any senior though. That… that made all the difference. "I've missed you, Snow. And you're right; I don't want to be stubborn. We never were. Thank you for everything," and there was so much more to what she said than he would ever know.

As she sat there under a broken light with Snow's hand over hers, Serah had the weirdest feeling that his hand would always be there. That _he_ would always be there. The real question was if Lighting would stay around to see it. Whatever the case, Claire couldn't stop Serah from seeing Snow or his family anymore. She was nearly an adult; they were in high school together; Snow had even apologized.

Why, then, did Serah feel like she'd inflicted Snow to the fury of a whole bunch of college students? As it was, it would be hard to sneak around when Lightning was a senior and knew all of the school. But she had Snow now. Snow could help her just as Lightning could, but in different ways.

Thus the splitting of Serah Farron began.

…

"I don't want to hear it, Serah! Do you know what he said to dad before he died? He said that he should leave mom! It's no wonder that mom died of an illness later with those kind of thoughts around her. And I'm sure Snow is as much as a home wrecker as-"

"Will you just be Claire for a second and not 'Lightning'? How can you say that the Guardian Corps haven't changed you? You're really just upset that he always teased you, but you're making excuses! I guess it's no surprise when you look at where Bodhum government's going!"

Despite her heartfelt speech, Serah found she, literally, couldn't stand up for what she believed in. She suddenly felt sick. Faint. She had _never_ yelled at Claire like that before. She'd promised that she wouldn't. Claire, _Lightning_, had sacrificed too much for her as it was. Serah wasn't at all surprised when she slid back down into her seat.

She, however, was surprised when Lightning did the same thing. "I forget how delicate you can be, Serah," Lightning said in a voice that very much reminded Serah of their mother, "I'm sorry. I'll try to see your side, but Snow is just _so_-"

"Lightning." There that was better. Serah was looking at her sister with resolve in her eyes. She had used a strong tone, but it was still better than yelling.

Lightning realized the same thing, too. "Very well. The Guardian Corps has taught me how to evade battle. If Snow is peaceful, I will be, as well."

That was all it took for Serah to leap across the table and hug Claire as strongly as she possibly could. Lighting was hesitant at first, but she too hugged her baby sister with a sense of love and protection.

It was in feeling that she _was_ still her Claire-Bear. That Serah let loose tears she didn't realize she'd been holding onto. Maybe, just maybe, she had shielded herself, too. Maybe in trying to be so warm for Lightning, she'd become oblivious to all that she'd lost.

Lightning soothed Serah as she cried, and kissed her head. Serah couldn't help remembering how Snow had breathed in the smell of her hair. Why couldn't her two favorite people in the world just coincide?

…

Her answer came to her the day Snow and her became an official couple. Ironically, it was not when they had that one-year in the same school that it happened, but after they had lost it. Serah had to wonder if part of the reason for that was Lightning's graduation. Snow clearly enjoyed visiting her at school when Lightning couldn't hound him.

When she said all of this to him over french-fries at lunch, Snow had immediately brushed it off as he brushed his nose against hers. But when she looked at him curiously, he couldn't deny the whole truth of her thoughts. "It's not that I have anything against your sister. And it's not that I don't want to be around her. It's just-"

"She doesn't approve of you; she doesn't want to be around you," Serah said this with her face in her hands. She rubbed tired circles against her closed eyes, and just breathed.

When Snow removed her hands from her face, she found she couldn't deny the curiousness in his eyes, either. Throwing caution to the wind, she laid down with her head in Snow's lap. She didn't care that this was undignified behavior for a sophomore. She couldn't care that Snow wasn't even supposed to be at the school. Instead, she planted a kiss to the hand Snow had on his leg, and just relaxed.

It was with a humor that the situation didn't call for that Serah said, "Even in your wariness for each other you're not the same."

Snow laughed at that, and wrapped an arm around Serah. She leaned her head against his chest, and smiled at him beautifully when she heard him say, "At least I make things fun for you."

That was true enough. Serah hugged herself to Snow at the prospect, but that wasn't to say that things weren't fun with Lightning.

…

Lighting laughed, really laughed, when the car she'd been using on the Life board could no longer hold more kids. She slung the game piece at Serah, and insisted that that right there was enough of a reason to quit. "Guess that's why I don't date people. Really, I may have done a good job with you, but I don't think I could handle fifteen kids."

Serah laughed at Lightning's unintended joke, as she went to do the dishes, and left Lighting to clean up the game board. "Yeah, but if you keep moving up in ranks at the Guardian Corps, you'll have that many rookies to look after, eventually."

Serah tried very hard not to think about Lighting's words, "I may have done a good job with you," but after awhile it became a useless effort. Maybe now that Serah was an adult, Lighting didn't feel the need to shelter her from knowing what a burden she'd been.

More than anything, Serah wished she could show her sister that she hadn't had to grow up completely.

Lightning seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Serah. As she came up and assisted Serah in washing the dishes, she seemed distracted. She looked at the dishwater only when she said, "Do you regret that in becoming an adult to protect you, I somehow still forced you to be an adult. I mean, I should have played with you more. I just made you age in a way I didn't want to-"

In all honesty, Serah had let Lighting go on longer than she'd intended to. But it was so weird to here Lightning regret anything in her life that Serah had come up short. Still, her smile was truly happy when she turned around to face her sister. "It's okay that you never taught me how much eyeliner would get a guy's attention. I'm just sad that you never even _tried_ to put on eyeliner to get a guy's attention. Mom and dad thought you'd be the first to bring a guy over."

And maybe it's the sadness and concern that passes over Serah, that makes Lighting examine things in a new light. With a deep breath, she tells Serah what she's been hoping for for years. "I'll go over the next time you hang out at Snow's."

And though Serah doesn't hug Claire, or thank her, the smile on her lips when she mouths "Claire," is enough for Lightning to know she's made a decision that couldn't make Serah any happier.

…

If there was anything more frightening than Lighting's anger, it was how frigid she could be. If Serah hadn't come to love Snow so much, she would have demanded to know why he thought it was a good idea to bring up NORA when Lightning was finally giving him a chance.

Snow had gone to get the two ladies drinks, and if Serah weren't so concerned about Lightning using her Manadrive on the establishment, she would have gone to get Snow out of Lebreau's kitchen. No drinks that Snow made could ever be good. Serah would laugh at how cute her hero could be if Lightning weren't on the warpath.

She looked very much like a panther in a cage as she paced. She was muttering under her breath, and Serah was willing to bet a lot of them were obscenities. "Only made this anti-government origination because of me," she thought she heard Lightning mutter.

Serah sighed overdramatically and Lightning instantly sent her sister a look. Deciding whatever happened would happen, Serah began kicking her legs up and down as she waited. This time Lightning sighed overdramatically. "Will you cut that out, Serah? That skirt is short enough as it is. And I don't want that idiot to-"

Serah would have liked to believe that Snow's sudden reappearance was enough to halt her sister's words, but Serah knew she was kidding herself. She had only been concerned by Serah's frown.

Serah was more concerned that she was able to turn it into a faux smile so quickly. At least it was fake until Snow decided to take that moment to poke Serah in the side. She jumped in her chair, and even though she smacked Snow on the back, her smile was real.

The sadness on Lightning's face was not lost to Serah. Her own smile became more resigned when she took in what Lighting's face meant. If only there was a way to say, "I'm not replacing you," without Lightning getting snippety.

Snow, as it was, was completely oblivious to what was going on between the sisters. Serah realized then that she loved Snow for being unobservant as much as everything else. "I'm sorry," Snow said with his eyes only on Serah, "It turns out you were right, baby. I am definitely not a drink mixer."

Serah wasn't certain if Lighting crushed her glass at Snow's endearment, NORA, or something else. As the glass broke even more on the floor, Lightning stalked closer to Snow. In an utterly ridiculous moment, Serah heard herself gulp. That infuriated Lighting even more. She threw Serah's drink to the ground, and the three adults stared at each other. Finally, Lightning said in a dangerously quiet voice, "She's still underage, Snow."

Serah had the feeling that Lightning was talking about a lot more than the alcohol. Stepping between her future fiancé and sister, Serah put a palm to both of their chests, as they glared at each other. Oddly enough that seemed to set them off more than anything.

"You make life miserable for her, Lighting!" Snow exclaimed in a truthful severity that Serah found she couldn't completely argue with.

"At least I can _provide_ her a life. At least I don't only care about partying!" And though Serah didn't really agree, she could understand why her sister would make that assessment.

In Snow's fury, he stepped closer to Lightning without acknowledging Serah. Serah's arm curled in an unnatural angle, and she tried very hard not to cry out.

Maybe she was an idiot to think that the seasoned warrior's eyes wouldn't have taken that in. Removing Serah's arm from her, Lightning stepped closer to Snow and literally hissed at him between her teeth. "Look what you did! You hurt Serah! You can't even protect her!"

"There's more than one way to protect someone! To save someone!"

And though Serah was in an awful pain, those words stuck with her. A certain clarity had made itself known, and Serah was bolting from the room before she even realized her feet were moving.

Her right hand balled up into a fist, and she meant to wipe her tears away, but she was distracted. Lighting would say that a fist was something needed to keep the troublemakers at bay, but Snow would have said it was a way one could let out their emotions.

As Serah found herself sitting on a park swing, she couldn't help but wonder which one it was. Was there even an answer? It didn't seem to her that there was.

But even more frightening was realizing that she needed something different from Snow and Lightning both. Maybe she always had, but what really mattered was that they both needed her in a different way. And Serah didn't think she could be both Serahs for them. At least not at the same time.

For the first time since Serah could remember, she found that she wasn't certain there was a solution to this. She'd tried to get them to see eye-to-eye, but such a thing seemed silly and impossible now. They'd always been on completely different sides of the spectrum. Snow made Serah happy, but Lightning resolved to make her strong. If they agreed on anything, it was that they'd never want Serah to fight or be in danger. But they saw each other as bad for her.

Wasn't there something she could do to get them to have a common enemy?

As snow danced around Serah, and the playground took on an icy hue, Serah wondered if she'd ever find an answer. Just moments ago the weather had seemed fall like. A little chilly, but still warm. How fast the weather could change! Snow and warmth couldn't coexist. But neither could snow and lightning.

Unless… looking at the Manadrive Lightning had made her wear, Serah was struck by a sudden idea. Yes, there would be a reason she tells both Snow and Lighting when she becomes a L'Cie. Because when the world is falling apart, when everyone is against them, they'll find a way to coexist in the battlefield. A way for Serah. Until then, there relationship will be better, but still a little strained.

When the two older adults find Serah in the cold snow, it's the warm lighting she longs for, but she still keeps her ears open for Jack Frost. "We're sorry, Serah," Snow say as he walks beside them, and kisses her hand. Light and I have talked it over, and we've decided that we won't fight for you anymore. You can be with whoever you like _whenever_ you like, and we'll try to keep an open mind."

Lighting snorts at this, but she doesn't disagree. Serah warm and safe in her arms is all she's ever wanted. But maybe she's allowed her to become scarred from the heat. As hard as it is to believe, maybe she needs to let her little sister weather the bitter conditions. "I'll give you what you want, Serah, but know that when it comes to any target after you, I'm the one who will shoot them."

Snow smirks at this, but doesn't say anything else.

Even Serah, though she almost feels like she might go into hypothermia, has to smile as she leans into Claire, and grabs onto Snow's hand. She'd wish more than anything that she wouldn't have to tear her heart open for them, but for the time being, she'll be content that they're trying for her.

The reward, the reward she knows will happen, will be well worth it. Someday they'll be united in the same way, and she'll feel an equal warmth coming from Snow and Lighting. Someday.

For now she's content to dream, and hold onto her two lights. It won't be too long before she'll have them both in eternal life.

**Author's Note: This story was written for my dear friend, Laura's birthday in two days, but since my birthday's today, I thought I'd treat you FFXIII readers early.**

**I've really come to love Serah. It'd definitely be hard being in her shoes.**

**This story was intended to be equal Snow/Serah and Lightning/Serah, I hope I showed her love for both of them equally.**

**The ending, also, was very symbolic. "It won't be too long before she'll have them both in eternal life," This, for example, is derived from the belief that L'Cie who completed their focus would turn to crystal and gain eternal life.**

**In some ways, I'm not satisfied with the ending, and I might write more to this later. Or maybe not. What do you guys think?**

**The reason I didn't get into L'Cie territory is because Laura hasn't finished the game yet, and I didn't want to spoil anything. But would you like to see something with it? Or did this story allude to it well enough on its own? Are you satisfied by what you know from the game?**

**If anything, I'm glad I didn't spoil too much (I think). Except maybe that Lightning's real name is Claire. Sorry for those who didn't know that.**

**Also, the interactions between Snow, Lightning, and Serah are all mine. I used some knowledge from the game, but I'm not even sure how long they knew each other. Or if their families knew each other. So take it all with a grain of salt. There's some truth, but also fanon in this.**

**I, for one, like the background I came up for them. It seems to fit for them.**

**Anyway, be sure to tell me what you think about all of this. Reviews make great birthday gifts!**

**Look for more Snow/Serah, and Lightning/Serah from me in the future. This was SO much fun to write! **

**And sorry for any typos. I'm not perfect when it comes to grammar, and I don't have a beta… **

**-Shanna**


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